Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun One who spends money recklessly or wastefully.
- adjective Wasteful or extravagant.
from The Century Dictionary.
- noun One who spends lavishly, improvidently, or foolishly; an unthrifty spender; a prodigal.
- Wastefully spending or spent; lavish; improvident; wasteful; prodigal: as, a spendthrift heir; spendthrift ways.
from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.
- noun One who spends money profusely or improvidently; a prodigal; one who lavishes or wastes his estate. Also used figuratively.
- adjective Prodigal; extravagant; wasteful.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun Someone who
spends money improvidently orwastefully . - adjective
Wasteful ,improvident orprofligate . - adjective
Lavish orextravagant .
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun someone who spends money prodigally
- adjective recklessly wasteful
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
Support
Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word spendthrift.
Examples
-
To start with, his popular reputation as a careless spendthrift is untrue.
-
I voted for McGinn and the notion that he's the fiscally responsible one and Dively's a spendthrift is moronic. sister Loura
McGinn’s Budget Briefing: Gloom, Doom, and Reorganization « PubliCola 2010
-
Let's hope so ...... the spendthrift is bankrupting the country.
-
South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun has been described as a spendthrift "socialist" by the head of emerging markets at Goldman Sachs.
THE NEW STRONGMEN 2007
-
He has been described as a spendthrift and gambler, and as one scarcely honest in his extravagance and gambling.
Framley Parsonage 2004
-
At the crowing of the cock, the extravagant and erring spirit (that is, the spendthrift of a defendant) whether he be drinking arrack punch at Vauxhall, champaigne at the Mount, or brandy and water at the Eccentries, must kick off his glass-slipper, and hobble back to St. George's Fields, like the lame bottle-conjuror of Le Sage.
The Mirror of Taste, and Dramatic Censor, Vol. I, No. 5, May 1810
-
He suddenly HAD recalled the spendthrift Delatour perfectly, and as quickly regretted now that he had not doubled the honorarium he had just sent to his portionless daughter.
A Sappho of Green Springs Bret Harte 1869
-
He has been described as a spendthrift and gambler, and as one scarcely honest in his extravagance and gambling.
Framley Parsonage Anthony Trollope 1848
-
So even though the Japanese and other Asians have been "good boys, working and saving," the coming slump could hit them even harder than the "spendthrift" Americans.
-
Government to pull the reins on 'spendthrift' ministers
WN.com - Articles related to Reliance Infratel IPO gets Sebi nod 2010
sera commented on the word spendthrift
"Someone who spends money prodigally"
August 16, 2007
oroboros commented on the word spendthrift
"Spendthrift" is one of those words that always confuses me. I always think it means the opposite of what it actually does.
To me I think that it would mean being "thrifty" ("tight", "frugal") with one's "spending".
It actually means being wasteful with one's money. This comes from the fact that "thrift" as a noun means one's fortune or savings, so one who is a spendthrift literally spends his savings (presumably with little prudence).
June 14, 2008
yarb commented on the word spendthrift
Ditto - I too find this word counter-intuitive.
June 14, 2008
dontcry commented on the word spendthrift
I agree. I once got into an argument with someone who would not back down in their belief that it meant "frugal". How petty...
June 14, 2008
kewpid commented on the word spendthrift
I was not confused before, but I will be now. Thanks a lot guys!
June 14, 2008